June 2010  Dinner Meeting

Topic: Cutting Costs with a Scalpel, Not a Chainsaw: Maintaining Profitability in a Recession

Speaker: Curt Finch

Abstract: In a recession, management often makes unwise decisions out of panic.   They might cut employees or reduce spending on various programs that are good for the company.  Consequently, many companies that slash costs in response to an economic recession find themselves unable to achieve top-line growth when the recession ends.

Overzealous cutting of people and projects can be avoided, or at the very least, can be performed with more intelligent precision.  All that are required to handle such problems the right way are per-customer per-project profitability metrics.

Understanding project costs is the first step towards understanding profitability.  Most managers know how profitable the company is in general, but few of them know how profitable it is on a per-project or per-customer basis.  Yet this level of understanding is necessary in order to develop and implement the right growth strategy.  Think of it as the difference between performing surgery with a scalpel and performing it with a chainsaw.

Learning objectives: Following the presentation, attendees will:

• Be able to know which projects are profitable and how to cut the unprofitable ones with precision
• Understand labor rates, expense tracking and allocation of indirect costs
• Be able to lead their company to per-customer per-project profitability

Please join us for the Membership Information Session from 5:30p.m.-6:00p.m. to hear about the benefits of PMI-SFBAC membership!

*Save $5 by registering by midnight Thursday, June 10, 2010. 

Instructor Biography:

Curt Finch is the CEO of Journyx, the first company to provide web-based time-tracking, project accounting and resource management solutions that guide customers to per-person, per-project profitability.  Curt earned a B.S. in Computer Science from Virginia Tech in 1987 and he has been creating software or managing software teams ever since.  After stints at McDermott International and IBM, he helped launch TKG, a venture-backed firm that was acquired by Veritas (now Symantec) for over $40 million.  Curt created the world's first web-based timesheet application and the foundation for the current Journyx product offereings in 1997, and has co-authored 7 patents on behalf of Journyx.  He is a frequent speaker at major events and conferences, has many articles published in numerous business magazines, and his latest book, "All Your Money Won't Another Minute Buy: Valuing Time as a Business Resource" is available in most online bookstores.  Curt authors a project management blog at www.project-management-blog.com.
 

Agenda:
5:30-6:15: Registration & Networking Reception
6:15-6:35: Dinner Buffet & Continued Networking
6:35-6:40: Review Agenda - Carolyn Crockett, Director of Dinner Meetings SFBAC
6:40-6:50: SFBAC President's Message
6:50-8:45: Presentation & Workshop
8:45-9:00: Upcoming Dinner, Raffles & Close

Registration ends June 13, 2010.
Advance online registration by credit card only (Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Discover). Once advance registration closes, we will permit walk-ins at the door only if space is available (no credit cards accepted at the door.)

Cancellation and No-Show policy
If you have made a reservation and find that you will be unable to attend please send an email to programs@pmi-sfbac.org and cancel as early as possible. All cancellations are subject to a minimum $10 fee at least 5 days before the event. Cancellations after June 13, 2010 are subject to the full charge at the discretion of the CFO to ensure the Chapter does not incur excessive expenses.

If you have any questions, please contact Carolyn Crockett at programs@pmi-sfbac.org.